Caught
by primrosered
Summary: Bella feels like she has nothing left to live for. Now a one-shot.  Yeah... discontinued it.  Sorry.


**Caught**

_by primrosered_

xxxxxx

Sometimes it felt like she was falling apart at the seams and there was nothing she could do about it. Bella looked down at the black, churning waters smashing against the cliff face; musing at how much it reflected the violent feelings beating against her chest. She thought about this pain and thought about each day. She remembered the mornings when she would have to blanket herself with pretense in order to avoid irritating loved ones from hovering. She needed space. But each layer she pulled up as masks felt like a deliberate suffocation. It was all so ridiculously counter productive.

Which brought her here today in this dark and gloomy place, peeling them all off herself in a foolish and deadly manner. _Thank God._ She knew it was a dangerous idea to have these kinds of thoughts running through her head while she was mentally preparing herself for what she was about to do... which was to throw her pathetic self, hurtling, over the cliff. This Swan was not graceful cliff diver. Unfortunately.

"Edward," she whispered, hoping against hope that he might suddenly answer so that she wouldn't have to **do** this. Putting herself in dangerous situations seemed to be the only time she would hear his voice. Cautioning her. Calling her name. Disapproving and ever so fearful for her safety. He did that often enough when they were together that his worried tone was ingrained so deeply inside her.

However, she was hearing it less and less with every daredevil attempt. She used to be scared of a lot of things. Death and danger, especially. But those fears had begun to fade. His voice had begun to fade. What was there to be afraid about if she found that her life had lost its meaning?

_Bella!_

The faint call startled her out of her reverie and her heart raced a little with hope. She strained to listen over the loud crashing waves. She heard the voice calling her again. But the tone was all wrong. Brusque. Jacob.

No. If he came for her now and saw her like this, he would stop her. And with a determined set of her jaw, she stepped over the edge.

The sensation of falling was familiar yet unfamiliar at the same time. It was similar to the nightmares she'd wake from; where it felt like she had dropped from _someplace_ and land, startled awake, on her bed. Yet, the feeling of the icy wind and rain cutting into her face was new. There was a total loss of control as she tried (and failed) to change direction mid-air.

_Oh God. I'm dead._ She thought with absolute certainty, feeling as if her heart would burst with terror.

She was disappointed to realize that the only voice she had heard was the sound of her own terrified scream. Seconds later, she crashed into the sea.

xxxxxx

It's so cold. It's colder than the ocean. Why was it so cold? Something bit into her calf and was tugging her weightless form in a specific direction.

Up?

Further down?

Were there sharks at La Push?

xxxxxx

Darkness...

Blurry...

Something red in the water. It's too bright to be blood.

She thought she saw rows of sharp teeth forming into a predatory smile.

The salty water stung her eyes so she closed them again.

xxxxxx

Bella surfaced from the sea with an instinctual gasp, greedily breathing in much-needed oxygen and coughing when she accidentally inhaled some sea water. She was lightheaded and numb with cold but very much aware of a solid arm wrapped around her neck as it supported her head above the water.

She was being towed back towards the shore at a remarkably fast rate. She was okay for now. It was okay to pass out for a while, wasn't it?

So she did.

xxxxxx

It felt like she was being taken for a bumpy ride. The discomfort was enough to drag her partly back into consciousness. "Renee... let Phil drive..." Bella kept her eyes stubbornly closed to repress the dizziness assaulting her senses. She was going to vomit if her mother didn't stop driving like a lunatic any time soon. It was strange though... Why was the car carrying her over its shoulder? And why did the other cars honking angrily behind her sound a lot like barking and growling?

xxxxxx

The sharp jab to her side was enough to finally force her awake. Bella moaned in pain and curled away from the foot that was determinedly kicking her into awareness. "Wake up, little blood bag." The foot pressed against her shoulder and forced her onto her back. She stared, disoriented, at the stunning crimson-eyed woman grinning sadistically at her.

The comprehension was slow but inevitable. Another sharp kick and a snap of broken bone further quickened the process. Bella understood in an instant what Victoria intended to do with her.

xxxxxx


End file.
